志异 Draft by Drama box December 2014 (english) | Page 6

Although not
necessarily
discernible,
tensions exist
between human
beings and their
environment,
in dialogues
between people,
and between the
feelings and hopes
of an individual.
They support the
fragile illusion of
harmony but also
threaten to destroy
that illusion.

Feature

There are all kinds of tensions that lurk beneath the veneer of
harmony. This is a perfect metaphor for the relationship between
life and death. Although not necessarily discernible, tensions
exist between human beings and their environment, in dialogues
between people, and between the feelings and hopes of an
individual. They support the fragile illusion of harmony but also
threaten to destroy that illusion.
Among the many exhibitions presented by BOTH SIDES, NOWLiving with Dying, there was one titled ‘My Message To Death’.
Participants were encouraged to pen down thoughts they found
difficult to articulate and pictures of what they wrote were then
taken and mounted on the exhibition walls.
One photo showed three young women
holding a piece of paper with the message:
‘Please don’t take our friends away.’
Another showed a mother with an infant in her arms.
Her message said simply: ‘Take me first.’
Two young men wrote: ‘Hello!’ and ‘Ah! Come get me!’
An old woman had just one word for her maker:
‘Peace.’